That should be that. The Devils’ 13-point All-Star break lead should ensure their sixth Atlantic Division title in nine seasons.

They parted yesterday at the Meadowlands almost celebrating, a happy, laughing bunch after beating the Flyers in a shootout, 4-3, in a game they never led.

For the second straight game, the Devils came back in the third period to force overtime and the shootout, thanks to Brian Gionta’s goal with 20.8 seconds left in regulation. They snapped their drought of losing three straight shootouts when Gionta scored and Martin Brodeur stopped Simon Gagne, Peter Forsberg and Mike Richards.

The Devils’ three-time comeback raised their record to 29-14-5, second in the Eastern Conference, thanks to their current 10-1-2 torrid stretch.

“It’s hard to ask for more,” said Brodeur, who along with Brian Rafalski will represent the team in Wednesday’s All-Star Game in Dallas. “We’ll take where we’re at right now. It’s a great situation to be in.

“After our rocky season last year, to be able to get consistency is great. We’re in first place, and we know the hardest part is to come, but we’ve put ourselves in pretty good position.”

Even Claude Julien was pleased with his first 48 games behind the Devils’ bench.

“We’ve had a good run since Christmas,” Julien said. “We’ve played some pretty good hockey. There are a lot of good things that have been done. Are we happy going into the break? I think so, to a certain extent.”

The Devils could use more even-strength goals – more of any variety, for that matter – but when they return to duty Friday in Tampa, it will have been more than a month since they allowed more than three goals in a match through this 13-game run, since Dec. 23.

“Hey, we’re in first place, playing well at home, gotten better on the road and can come from behind. We’ve got an MVP in Marty. It looks good,” Scott Gomez said.

Yet they remain more convincing in results than on the ice, falling behind three times to a Flyers team that lost its eighth straight and 36th of 47.

The Flyers grabbed the early lead on rookie Ryan Potulny’s fifth career goal. Potulny picked off a clearance up the middle, raced into the slot and sent a wrister through Brad Lukowich’s screen and under Brodeur’s glove 2:25 into play.

Gomez squared the period with his ninth at 15:25, using Gionta as a power-play screen for his right circle short-side slap over Antero Niittymaki’s glove.

Kyle Calder put the Flyers back in front 1:58 into the third with his eighth, after Jeff Carter escaped Andy Greene at the end boards, came out around the left post and swept the pass across the goalmouth. Calder hit the open side.

Greene then notched his first NHL point when Jamie Langenbrunner rebounded his power-play point shot to tie the game again at 7:58.